2021 Visions: Social Enterprise, Apprenticeship and Local Ecosystem Hub

A bit more on the direction for 2021, vision, ideas, and invitations to get involved.

The Social Enterprise vision is to train people up to work as Permaculture designers/installers and teachers either as part of the ‘Earthcare’ team or as a self employed person themselves. This would provide local employment in the ‘regenerative sector’ both landscape and education. Do you have experience in setting up social enterprises? Could you advise?

I am still in the early stages of researching legal structure, funding and so on but my idea so far is to use a sort of apprenticeship structure as I do not want to be confined to classroom based learning -although that could perhaps compliment it. Do you live locally – Roscommon, Longford, Leitrim, Mayo? Are you interested in apprenticing? Let’s chat!

The Local Ecosystem Hub vision is more focused on finding those of you who already have skills in the various areas of Permaculture eg: plant production, green building, regenerative farming, etc and to formally create a network or co operative which can facilitate us to all work together easier and to better effect. The bones of this exist already but it is very scattered and everyone tends to be heads-down busy and not necessarily available to participate other than periodically. Do you live locally and are you interested in helping something like this grow? Let me know your thoughts!

All of these of course could work together, and the main aims of the thinking is to

• amplify the actual practitioners on the ground who ‘do the work’ – teaching, designing and installing systems,
• do this in a way that provides employment/self employment – or part thereof – so as to not be dependent on people’s spare time
• provide meaningful opportunities for people who are less resourced to make their own way
• create community, momentum and fun around these things and make them a normal and viable option especially for youth and younger people to consider as a pathway

As you can tell I am still crafting the details of the direction and I welcome conversation with anyone who is interested in inputting, contributing and getting involved. Please contact me with your thoughts and ideas if any of this resonates with you!

Contact details at the bottom of each web page.